The Crank File: What I’m Reading This Week 9/23/2015

Hey there comic book fans. So good to have you back for another installment of the Crank File. In totally non-comic related news, the 2015 NFL season is only two weeks old and Tom Brady has over 750 yards passing, 7 touch downs and the New England Patriots are two n oh. Suck it Goodell.

Ok back to the books. We’re more than halfway through September and Secret Wars #6 is not on shelves this week. Secret Wars is such an enormous, unwieldy event that it was bound to stumble along the way. Marvel only has a few weeks left before they launch their “All-new, all-different” Marvel Universe, will they wrap up Secret Wars in time? Stay tuned true believers.

Here’s What I’m Reading This Week:

Top of the Pile: Squarriors #4 Devil’s Due

Issue #4 will be the final issue of the first Squarriors miniseries. This title has been a surprise gem. Ashley Witten’s artwork is gorgeous. But don’t be fooled by the cute and cuddly looking animals, Squarriors is absolutely brutal. Game of Thrones level brutal and just as enjoyable. Squarriors has already been given the green-light for a second series, so I anticipate an action packed finale capped off with a wicked cliffhanger to keep us coming back.

The Mainstream One: Weirdworld #4 Marvel

Weirdworld #3 did something that few comics have ever done, which is make me laugh out loud. Holy crap, I nearly fell off my chair when we finally got a look at Warbow’s map of Weirdwold. Hands down my favorite Secret Wars tie-in/spin-off/whatever, Weirdworld is phenomenal. It’s a mashup of fantasy, action and humor splashed with absolutely insane visuals that hide strange new surprises at every turn. This week, Man-thing. Let’s get weird with it.

The Indie One: Fight Club 2 #5 Dark Horse

Fight Club 2 has been a weird, meta experience that loves reminding you how unconventional it is. And it works. In issue #5 we’ll be seeing ladies getting involved with Project Mayhem. “No girls allowed” was never one of the rules of Fight Club. Chuck Palanhuik is one of the unique voices of our generation. He’s not afraid to experiment with weird ideas or to say things that could offend and comic book seem to be the perfect medium for his eccentric sensibilities. Issue 5, Fight!

The #1 One: Wild’s End Enemy Within #1 Boom

The first Wild’s End miniseries kept us in constant suspense with its unlikely mash-up of War of the Worlds and The Wind in the Willows. As Clive, Susan, Fawkes, and the other survivors of the alien invasion of Lower Crowchurch try to cope with what just happened to their small town, the military arrives in an attempt to cover up the ‘incident.’ Town residents are immediately detained, questioned, and treated with suspicion. Clive and the rest will need to escape imprisonment if they’re to get the word out and warn the rest of the world in case the aliens return.

The One I’m Buying for the Cover: 1872 #3 Marvel

A steampunk Iron Man suit. Nuff said.

The Speculation One: Scooby-Doo Team-up #12 DC

No, you didn’t eat too many scoobie snacks. A Scooby-doo book is making the spec list and it’s all due to the incorrigible Harley Quinn. Terry Hoknes over at Hoknescomics.com pointed this out earlier: Harley Quinn fans buy any book with Harley in it. A typical print run for a Scooby-doo comic is roughly 10K. A typical Harley Quinn print run is around 60K. 50,000 Harley fans will be left wanting on Wednesday. Already pre-selling for $20 – $25 on eBay. Crazy.

Did you know Harley Quinn was inspired by a daytime soap opera character? Days of Our Lives actress Arleen Sorkin played a clown during a dream sequence and you can see the heavy influence in Harley’s costume design.

Sorkin would later go on to voice Harley Quinn in the quintessential 90’s cartoon, the Batman: The Animated Series. She has been the voice of Harley in numerous animated series and video games.